Orange Jordan and the European Union celebrated the graduation of “heroes of change”, the youth who completed their journey in the FabLab and Coding Academy in Aqaba, in a ceremony held under the patronage of the Minister of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, Ahmad Hanandeh, under the Innovation Space, a three-year project co-funded by the European Union’s “Innovation for Enterprise Growth and Jobs” program “Innovate Jordan”, to support entrepreneurship and empower youth digitally across the Kingdom.

The graduation was attended by Ramzi Al-Kabariti, Commissioner of Youth and Entrepreneurship, deputizing for Nayef Al Fayez, Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority Chief Commissioner, member of parliament Obeid Yassin, Sultan Hassan, deputizing for Dr. Khaled Alhajjaj, Governor of Aqaba, CEO of Orange Jordan, Philippe Mansour, and several of the company’s executive officers.

During the ceremony, the FabLab celebrated a milestone by graduating 173 young males and females, after they developed their prototypes using digital manufacturing equipment and devices, including 3D design, 3D printing, laser cutting, computer numerical control (CNC), printed circuits board (PCB), coding and electronics.

Alongside the FabLab, the Coding Academy also celebrated the graduation of two cohorts in Aqaba with a total of 50 students, with females exceeding 50%, after completing a 6-month intensive training in highly in-demand programming languages, professional and personal skills and more, followed by a 1-month internship in an IT company, extending the success of the Academy which achieved a remarkable employment rate of 80% among its graduates in governorates.

Both the FabLab and Coding Academy were expanded by Orange Jordan to provide digital resources and knowledge to youth in various governorates, especially those with high young population such as Aqaba, to enable them for the job market and starting their own ventures, as well as guiding them on their entrepreneurship journey.

Orange Jordan implemented the free programs in Aqaba, in cooperation with its partners, particularly the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority, which was keen to support these programs due to their immense role in empowering the governorate’s youth with essential professional and digital skills.

The CEO of Orange Jordan, Philippe Mansour, congratulated the graduates, stating: “I am very happy to be here in Aqaba to support the governorate’s youth and recognize their accomplishments and efforts in the FabLab and Coding Academy to be ready for the job market and launch tech-based projects that can attract investments”.

Speaking about the importance of Orange Jordan’s digital and entrepreneurial programs, Mansour added: “As a responsible digital leader, Orange has long been keen to expand the scope of its programs in line with market needs to provide the in-demand skillset and knowledge necessary for Aqaba’s youth and the growth of the Kingdom’s digital economy and innovation culture. I would like to thank the European Union and all of our partners for their role in these programs and for believing in their impact in Aqaba, the commercial and tourist hub that drives the Jordanian economy forward”.

To learn more, you can visit our website: www.orange.jo/en

About Innovate Jordan programme:

The 'Innovation for Enterprise Growth & Jobs' (Innovate Jordan) is a EUR 20 million programme, funded by the European Union in Jordan. The programme’s overall objective is to support private sector-led innovation that could drive inclusive economic development and promote systematic change in the local enterprise and innovation ecosystem in Jordan. The Programme will be implemented until 2024, through three grants. The First Grant action, ‘Scale-Up Roadmap for Growing Enterprises’ (SURGE), is implemented by a consortium led by Endeavor Jordan in partnership with BeyondCapital and Oasis500. The Second Grant action, ‘Jordan Industry 4.0 & Digitalization Innovation Centre’, (InJo4.0) is implemented by a consortium led By SAM Engineering & Trade Co. in partnership with Amman Chamber of Industry, and Transition Technologies - Advanced Solutions. The Third Grant action, “Innovation Space,” is implemented by Orange Jordan.

About Orange Jordan

Orange Jordan is the Kingdom’s responsible digital leader and one of the subsidiaries of Orange Global Group, featuring the best networks and innovative digital solutions, with a broad lineup of fixed, mobile, internet, data, and Smart Life Solutions, and more than 1300 employees dedicated to meeting the needs and aspirations of users across Jordan.

Orange Jordan offers a wide range of communication services not only to its customer base of 3.7 million individuals but also to businesses under the brand Orange Business Services (OBS).

The company takes pride in seven core values: transparency, agility, results-oriented, customer centricity, collaboration, caring, and excellence.

Through its corporate social responsibility strategy, inspired by the global group’s “Lead the Future” strategic plan, Orange Jordan continues to make a sustainable impact across the Kingdom by implementing various free digital and entrepreneurial programs to empower Jordanians and enhance digital inclusion to drive socio-economic development by focusing on 4 main pillars: digital education, digital inclusion, entrepreneurship, and the environment.

To learn more about us, please visit our website: www.orange.jo

About Orange

Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 43.5 billion euros in 2022 and 136,000 employees worldwide on 31 December 2022, including 75,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 287 million customers worldwide on 31 December 2022, including 242 million mobile customers and 24 million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 26 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies under the brand Orange Business.

In February 2023, the Group presented its strategic plan "Lead the Future", built on a new business model and guided by responsibility and efficiency. "Lead the Future" capitalizes on network excellence to reinforce Orange's leadership in service quality.

Orange is listed on Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).

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